Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Bruce Willis | ... | Emmett Smith | |
Emily Lloyd | ... | Samantha Hughes | |
Joan Allen | ... | Irene | |
Kevin Anderson | ... | Lonnie | |
John Terry | ... | Tom | |
Peggy Rea | ... | Mamaw | |
Judith Ivey | ... | Anita | |
Daniel Jenkins | ... | Dwayne | |
Stephen Tobolowsky | ... | Pete | |
Jim Beaver | ... | Earl Smith | |
Richard Hamilton | ... | Grampaw | |
Heidi Swedberg | ... | Dawn | |
Ken Jenkins | ... | Jim Holly | |
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Jonathan Hogan | ... | Larry |
Patricia Richardson | ... | Cindy |
Samantha Hughes, a teenage Kentucky girl, never knew her father, who died in Vietnam before she was born. Samantha lives with her uncle Emmett Smith, who also served in Vietnam. Emmett hangs around with Tom, Earl and Pete, three other Vietnam veterans who, like Emmett, all have problems of one kind or another, that relate to their war experiences. Sam, as Samantha is known, becomes obsessed with finding out about her father and his experiences, but Emmett and the other veterans don't want to talk about the war. Sam pushes everyone to attend a dance honoring the town's veterans, but Pete and Earl get into a fight, Emmett disappears, and Tom takes Sam home for an unsuccessful tryst. When Sam reads her father's diary, she begins to understand what his life and death meant, and with a trip to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, she and Emmett at least temporarily come to terms with the war in their lives. Written by Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>
"In Country" is a film that, to me, gets better with each viewing. Bruce Willis' portrayal of Emmett, a troubled Vietnam veteran, seemed right on; and if he's done any better pure acting, I'm not aware of it. I strongly disagree with a couple of the negative comments on Emily Lloyd's performance in the film. I thought she was quite outstanding as Emmett's inquisitive niece, Samantha, who was searching for answers about her father who had died in Vietnam. As for why monotonic Winona Ryder wasn't selected for the role of Samantha (as mentioned in a prior comment) now that WOULD have been a drab, annoying performance as far as I'm concerned. There were also fine supporting performances from Joan Allen, Kevin Anderson, etc.